Reading Notes: Japanese Fairy Tales (Part A)

 Bibliography: Japanese Fairy Tales retold by Andrew Lang (Part A)

Photo by Ayelt van Veen on Unsplash

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- The Two Frogs -

This cute little story is about two frogs from very different towns travelling to see the other and meeting halfway on a mountain. They wanted to be able to take a peek at the towns they were travelling to, to see if the journey was going to be worth it. So, they climbed on each other's shoulders and faced the direction of the town. But though their noses faced that direction, their eyes faced backwards so what they saw were the towns they came from. Because of this, they thought the towns were exactly alike, and they each went back home, never seeing the other town.

- The Stonecutter - 

A humble stonecutter dropped off a gravestone to a rich man's house and wished to be rich like that. The mountain spirit granted his wish, and suddenly he had all the same riches. Then, a prince passed by with a golden umbrella to shield himself from the hot sun, and the stonecutter wished to be a prince like that. His wish was granted, but it wasn't enough. He wished to be the sun, and then the clouds, and then the mountain. Everything he wished for had its pros and cons, and he was never fully satisfied. As a mountain, he felt a mere stonecutter driving his tools into his base, and he wished to be a man again. So the mountain spirit turned him back into a man, and he was content as a stonecutter.

- The Maiden with the Wooden Helmet -

A couple and their beautiful daughter moved to the country after enduring hard times, but the father fell into depression and died. Soon after, the mother became ill and knew she would die too, so to protect her daughter she requested that her daughter wear a wooden helmet all the time so that no one could see her beauty and take advantage of her. The daughter obeyed and the mom died, and the daughter went to find work in some fields. She worked hard and kept the helmet on, despite the heat and rude comments she received. The owner of the farm requested she take care of his wife, who was ill. His son returned home soon afterwards, and one day while the daughter was washing her face in the stream, the helmet tilted so he could see her beauty. For days he asked to marry her and she declined, until her mother came to her in a dream and encouraged the match, after which she consented. On their marriage-day, the helmet refused to come off her head, so they married with it on. During the feast, the helmet burst into gems, and everyone saw the girl's beauty, and they lived happily ever after.

- The Envious Neighbor - 

An old couple in a village had no children, but they had a beloved dog. One day, while the old man was gardening, the dog was digging at something and kept barking at the man to get his attention. Finally, he came over to see what it was, and he saw a chest full of gold pieces. Him and his wife rejoiced and fed the dog well, giving it good meals and soft pillows for extra comfort as a reward. Their neighbor was envious of this, and begged for them to lend him their dog. They had a hard time saying no, so they agreed and the neighbor borrowed the dog, who dug at a tree, but there were only bones. The neighbor in his anger killed the dog, and lied and said the dog fell ill and died. The neighbors wept, and the dog spoke in the old man's dream that he was to cut down the fig tree and make a mortar out of it. He did, and when grinding rice, the rice turned into gold pieces. The neighbor begged to borrow their mortar, and they reluctantly said yes. He tried this, but the rice turned into awful smelling, rotten berries, and he smashed and burned the mortar. In another dream, the dog told the old man to gather the mortar's ashes and, when the royals were passing in the streets, to throw the ashes on the cherry blossoms and they would bloom despite it being too early in the season. He did this, and the royals were so impressed they gave him and his wife many gifts. The envious neighbor took remaining ashes and tried to copy his actions, but the ashes only burned their eyes and he was thrown in prison to die.

- The Sparrow with the Slit Tongue -

An old, kind man and his intolerable, greedy wife lived in a cottage in a forest. One day, a small sparrow was flying away from a hungry raven, and the old man fought the raven and saved the sparrow, letting it house itself in a cage in his home. In the day, he'd let the sparrow fly about and at night the sparrow would feel safe inside the cage. One day the old man left for several hours, and the woman, jealous of his affection to the bird, took her anger out on the creature and slit its tongue, and it flew away in fear. The old man returned home and was so sad to hear what happened, and he searched for days, calling for the sparrow. After a time, he understood he'd never see his bird again. One day, he was walking in the forest and came across a garden and small house, and a young lady came outside to greet him and explained she was the sparrow. She fed and entertained him, and when he left she had him choose a gift: a small or a large chest. He chose the small chest, and at home he opened it and saw a bunch of gems. The wife demanded to know where he went and ridiculed him for not getting the large chest. She went to the girl's house, demanded all the same treatment and a gift, and she was offered the same choice. She chose the large chest and went home to find two serpents inside, and they bit and poisoned her so that she died.

- The Cat's Elopement -

Two cats, Gon and Koma, fell in love but their owners wouldn't give up their cats to the other, so the pair ran away together. They came across a fierce dog, and Koma climbed up a tree. A servant of the princess rescued Gon from the dog and brought him inside to the princess, where he was treated with love and warmth, and he even killed a snake that had been pestering the princess. Some time later, a large cat was harassing a smaller cat out in the garden, and Gon drove off the large cat and found the smaller cat to be his lost-love, Koma. They explained their story to the princess, and they stayed together with her forever, having many kittens and going wherever she went.